Air traffic control – the warning!

DO you feel safe when flying into or out of US airports? Will you after reading this report from the Association of Collegiate Training Institutions, which represents colleges, universities, and faculty involved in training students for careers in aviation and air traffic control in the US.

  

Pope Field Air Traffic control via Wikimedia Commons

Washington DC – ON December 30, 2013, the Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) in the US terminated – without warning – its proven programme for educating potential air traffic controllers. Military veterans, students and graduates from the 36 FAA-authorized colleges and universities were wiped from the FAA's list of eligible applicants.

Airport Traffic Control Tower,
Kansas City International Airport 
by User:Charvex  via Wikimedia Commons

In the FAA's words, "the list was purged." Despite very high demand for controllers, the FAA "purged" more than 3,000 student candidates who had already passed the authority’s only validated aptitude test. 

The new hiring process requires zero experience or education. Applicants must simply have "three years of progressively responsible work experience" and pass a 62-question personality test. 

This test includes penetrating questions such as:

• What sports did you play in high school? 

• How many college credits did you take in art/music/dance/drama?

Why would you replace a truly validated system with a personality test? Additionally, the test was not secure. Anyone could take the examination without proof of identity. The FAA is aware that currently-employed air traffic controllers from the busiest facilities in the country took the personality "test" … and failed.

On July 30, 2014 the FAA released the results of this grand experiment. Michael Huerta, FAA Administrator, said he "could not be more excited about this new class of promising candidates." 

Looking at the FAA's numbers, Mr Huerta is "excited" that 55% of the new hires have zero aviation or air traffic control experience!

The flying public should be very afraid. 

The FAA is doubling down on the "new" hiring process, issuing press releases claiming all is well despite the fact that the process is far from transparent, cannot be explained, and has yet to show a single successful outcome. 

They, the FAA, will no doubt cite the intensive training at their academy to deflect concerns, but when leadership begins twisting data to prove success or starts curving test scores, how long before those same methods trickle down to the academy and your local airport?


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